iRecommend: A Prelude to Freedom Music by Evin Amiri [+Free Album Download]

if You Like: Jason Derullo, Chris Brown, 21:03, Ne-Yo, Frank Ocean, J. Moss, Trey Songz

Honestly I have waited for this moment for weeks! I was so excited a few weeks back when Evin Amiri ( member of the Grammy nominated group 21:03) announced on twitter he will be giving away a prelude to his upcoming album 'Freedom Music'. I was opportune to have heard a track titled 'Yeah 3x' before ( a track I'm sure you would love from the album) the announcement. So today without much ado, I hereby present Evin Amiri free Prelude to you which has 8 tracks!
Things to look forward to: Unexpected surprise feature from the eclectic rare band named 'Gungor' and also lead singer of the veteran four times Grammy award winning band 'Third Day' Mac Powell.

Click here to download
You can also follow Evin on twitter @EvinAmiri

Ponder:  

  "When I became honest about my trouble, my reputation went out the window, but i became the freest man in the world" - William P. Young

The Leader Amongst Us.

Who are the leaders amongst us?
Those who see the BIG picture and are agitated when we dwell in small circles?

Who are the leaders amongst us?
Those who have a glimpse of how it is meant to be and wail like prophets of old at us?

Honestly in real leadership, there's a tendency to be mistaken, a tendency to be judged by your actions and not your heart.
But wait ain't it better to 'spank' up to hear the alarm of devastation, obscurity, 'mundaness', oblivion and all things that can go wrong with a system when we resist change than to 'sing' a lullaby to ourselves till we arrive at the place no one wants to be? Ain't it?

I believe real leadership isn't 'autocratic' and domineering but it is the ability to inspire and woe until we arrive at a better place and most times not mincing the truth which could be hard on us at times.

So I ask once more, who are the leaders amongst?

Those who get frustrated by the status quo and do what ever it really takes to bring about a better change even if it cost them themselves.

Note, I never said leaders are afraid of confrontation or truth telling even when hard.

What conversations and confrontations have you been avoiding? Are you a leader amongst us? If yes, can we have them today cause we need you.
So STAND UP!

Question.
I think great leaders are selfless, aren't afraid to stand up for truth and confront issues hands-on; letting go of their fear of being misinterpreted by the hard actions they take.
What characteristics do you think GREAT leaders possess? Would love to read your thoughts :)

Photograph.

[The above picture is Katie Torwalt's. A singer and worship pastor from California and I love it so much I saved it from her twitter (@katietorwalt), I plan using some of the concept at my next photo-shoot]

Photograph is like prayer

Prayer like a photograph

We freeze time

We have an experience

A celebration with the divine

Wait before I indulge you with heavy poetry

Are your times with Him moments to remember or moments to endure?

Do you nod it off with a doze or look at the time several times to see how long you’ve been there

This is the idea of photograph; that those moments of communion are frozen on some blind spots of our hearts illuminating the inner room with bright colors

Life lights up, soul is at absolute UN-understandable peace and you can’t wait to go back.

Have you had a photograph you wanted to tear up, burn and throw into a bottomless sea

Have you? Cause I have

And have you had a photograph you just wanted to keep, treasure, love cause it reminds you of love in its purest form

Have you? Cause I have too

But wait if we have these two types of photographs we will notice that the difference isn’t the material but the people and faces in the picture.

In prayer we take photographs with God

And if we want to keep them or burn, it all hinges on this:

The photograph you took last with God; who was background and who was the camera focused on?

Cause the answer determines a picture kept and a picture torn.

Question:

When the idea of prayer like a photograph came to me, honestly I found it quite hilarious. Have you ever seen prayer like a photograph before? And what makes a great picture (or prayer) ? :)

 [Images via Pinterest]

The Pieces

Keep the pieces
Never let them go
For a long time I was frustrated by the only shards I was able to glean after a laborious day of lingering in the writing room
I would grind my teeth at the prospect of not having to finish a particular piece
But I forgot that all works of art are pieces, little fragments telling a whole story
That even a complete work is in-complete
The worker or artist just rested, stopped or passed it on
Most times I tore sheets of poetry because they were incomplete
Other times I broke jars of prose because I couldn't fill them with enough water until I heard our real job as people of art is to keep the pieces.
Imagine God who is the greatest artist discarding and throwing into the bin of heaven every broken parts of our lives, you and me. Imagine cause I don't want to imagine that.
But he chooses to tell a complete story even with all these things, (at least for those who bring all their broken pieces,) that story he tells not discarding the pieces leaves the whole all in awe.
It's always a nonsensical story, foolish to the wise and wise to the foolish.
This we must see
This we must learn
That the best works of art aren't ' 'perfect' but they are more like mosaic: little shards, broken pieces held by glue that can't be broken and that very thing is the artist effect
These days I have (concurrently running) at least ten word documents open at the same time
Little drops I will put down
Little shards I will keep
Cause when clay is in my hands, I must remember whose hands I'm in and how he handles me
We like to throw away the pieces, to clear space and live clutter free which is a good thing if we aren't discarding heaven's treasure.
If your courts are overflowing, pray to heaven for an expansion of territory. Treasures are given for a reason. There is an outlet and an idea cash flow for every abundance.
And really this is it: we are quick to recognise seeds for seeds but what if, just what if the little notes, the little ideas, the little words, the little everything being sent your way are seeds. What if they are to test to see how you would handle the tree that is meant to be in your garden.
And if you are a writer I hope you aren't seeing trees for trees. Cause your tree is the book, books, that masterpiece you are meant to leave for a broken but yet beautiful world
Ever wondered why there are pieces in masterpieces? Please keep the pieces.
Question
Have you had a situation where you went back to a left over or abandoned work or project which latter turned out GREAT? I would love to hear from you in the comments